Corned beef and cabbage is a comforting and nourishing combination of lean brine-cured beef brisket, slowly braised in broth (and beer, of course) with big wedges of cabbage. / Fotolia

By Wolfgang Puck

Wolfgang Puckís Kitchen

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One of my favorite foods to cook and eat for St. Patrickís Day is traditional corned beef and cabbage. Itís a comforting and nourishing combination of lean brine-cured beef brisket, slowly braised in broth (and beer, of course) with a generous assortment of vegetables, including big wedges of cabbage.

For a holiday that comes a few days before the official end of winter, it perfectly bridges the two seasons, warming and filling at a time when days can still be cold, and yet offering up a bounty of fresh produce along with the protein.

Cooking corned beef and cabbage can have its challenges, the biggest being how long it can take to simmer that big piece of meat to absolute tenderness ó generally, a good three hours for a 3-pound brisket. Iíve heard some home cooks complain that sometimes even that much time isnít enough, and Iíve known other cooks who get impatient and wind up serving chewy meat.

Iíve discovered, however, a simple solution to ensuring not only perfectly tender meat but also to achieving it in record time: Use a pressure cooker. With an electric pressure cooker, you can make perfect corned beef in about an hour and a half of cooking time, plus the extra few minutes it takes for the cooker to come to full pressure beforehand and then let pressure release naturally after cooking is done.

Even better, cooking under pressure helps to break down the meat fibers for absolutely fork-tender results, and it concentrates the flavors of meat and vegetables like nothing else I know. Follow my recipe here, and you wonít believe how delicious the results will be.

Let me offer one important tip, though: Donít quick-release the pressure at the end of cooking, as the sudden change can tighten the meatís muscle fibers. When cooking is done, be sure to unplug your cooker, too, while pressure releases slowly; that way, if your model of cooker includes a warming function, it wonít affect the pressure change.

Unwrap and drain the corned beef. With a sharp knife, carefully trim off excess fat. Rinse the beef with cold running water.

Put the corned beef in the cooking chamber of the pressure cooker. Sprinkle it with its seasoning packet. Add the bay leaves.

Arrange the cabbage wedges on their sides evenly around the corned beef. Evenly place the potato halves, carrot chunks, onion quarters, and garlic cloves among the cabbage wedges.

Pour the beer and the broth over the ingredients.

Secure the lid of the pressure cooker, locking it in place following the manufacturerís instructions. Close the pressure release valve.

Turn on the pressure cooker. Once it has reached full pressure, set a timer, either on the machine or separate from it, to cook under pressure for 90 minutes.

At the end of the cooking time, turn off the machine and also unplug it. Leave the pressure release valve closed, letting pressure release slowly on its own, about 10 minutes.

When pressure has returned to normal, carefully unlock and remove the lid. Transfer the corned beef to a cutting board and, with a sharp knife, cut it across the grain into thick slices, arranging them on a heated platter with the vegetables or in individual heated shallow soup plates. Moisten the meat and vegetables with the cooking liquid and serve immediately, passing mustard and horseradish on the side.

From and tested by Wolfgang Puck. Nutrition information not available.